The gloves are off as studio comes out swinging.
Deadline is reporting that MGM has filed a lawsuit against boxing legend Jake LaMotta and the producers of the Martin Guigui-directed indie ‘Raging Bull 2.’
In its 7-page complaint (you can it read here thanks to Deadline) MGM is claiming breach of contract along with four other counts and is trying to the court to order production on the film, which is currently shooting in LA, to be halted.
Furthermore, MGM wants to make sure the indie film never sees the light of day, and is seeking compensatory, punitive and exemplary damages and more “awarded in an amount sufficient to punish the RB II defendants and to deter those who would commit or knowingly seek to profit from similar actions, now or in the future.”
MGM asserts that it had first right of refusal to LaMotta’s 1986 sequel book and that the ‘Raging Bull 2’ producers are publicly associating the new film with the original ‘Raging Bull.’
The studio goes on to claim that this “is plainly intended to create confusion in the marketplace and to trade off the value” Martin Scorsese’s 1980 Oscar-nominated film starring Robert DeNiro, claiming that the new film will irreparably tarnish the original.